Gala boss plans new steak house chain

Gala Tent founder Jason Mace is going back to his roots to launch what he hopes will become a chain of steak houses across South Yorkshire.

Jason started Manvers-based Gala fifteen years ago after finding it impossible to hire a marquee for a Millennium party at a club in Barnsley run by his parents.

Since then, Gala has grown into a multimillion-pound business that is the UK’s largest designer and manufacturer of tents, marquees and gazebos and has offices in China, where a number of the innovative patented in-house shelters it has designed and developed are made.

While building his tent business, Jason never lost his interest in the licensed trade and, not so very long ago, bought the closed Park View bar and restaurant, near to Gala Tent’s Farfield Park headquarters.

Having successfully re-opened that pub as a sports bar and restaurant, complete with a function suite decked out to resemble the interior of a marquee, Jason is now taking on a new challenge.

He recently acquired the Double Barrel public house, on Brampton Road, Thurcroft, and is investing £80,000 in its complete refurbishment, installing a brand new kitchen, new furnishings, flooring, windows, electrics and toilets, in addition to re-plastering and decoration.

When the Double Barrel re-opens next month, it will be a steakhouse employing around a dozen staff.

Jason Mace said: “It’s a real shame to see a pub in a great location like this standing empty. We’ve carried out a lot of research locally and there’s lots of demand for a function suite and steakhouse in this area as it’s within 10 minutes of Hellaby, Dinnington and Wickersley and really close to the M18 and M1 motorways.

“We’ve a tried and tested plan that has worked so well for the Park View pub and we’ll be using this winning formula for the new steakhouse.

“This includes a complete refurb, an exciting menu and its own website, social media and marketing support. I’m hoping this will be the first of many steakhouses we’ll be opening in South Yorkshire.”